Every wise webmaster knows the more links you have to your site,
the more traffic you'll get - so increasing the number of links
to his site, really is a webmaster's number one promotional
priority. However a lot of webmasters get so enmeshed in
building up the number of links to their sites, that they forget
all links are not created equal - some links are far more
valuable than others.
It is absolutely essential to your success that you not only
build up the number of links to your site, but also be fully
aware of how to evaluate the worth of each link. This lets you
can concentrate your efforts on getting the most effective links
to your site, and guarantees that you are getting a fair deal in
any reciprocal linking arrangements.
Here's a list of factors you should consider when assessing the
value of a particular link:
* Permanent. A permanent link to your site is far more valuable
than one that is removed after a few days (or even hours, in the
case of some automated Free-For-All links pages).
* Placement. A link to your site from the front page (or even
one of the internal pages) from a high traffic site, especially
one of the top few thousand web sites, is far more valuable than
a zillion links from people's personal home pages.
* Relevance. Ideally the link to you should be on a page (or
better yet a whole site) devoted to the same or a closely
related topic to your own. For example, all things being equal,
a link to your golfing store from a golf tips site is much more
likely to produce results than from an auto, finance or games
site.
* Descriptive. A link that explains your site and entices a
person to click, will get far more traffic (and better quality,
more interested visitors) than a non-descriptive link. Compare
for example: "Joe's Golf Store" versus "Joe's Golf Store - Tour
quality golf clubs at discount prices, complete guide to every
golf course in the USA and Canada, and free pro golfing tips"
* Low Competition. A link that is buried among 500 others on the
same page will not get many clicks. A listing on a page which
also lists 10 or 20 direct competitors (example: other golf
stores selling to the same market), is less valuable than being
"exclusive" in your particular category (example: being the only
golf store on a list of resources for golfers).
* Context. Links usually work better if place in some kind of
related context like an article for example. Be prepared to help
out people placing your links in a context that works by
providing free articles, which explain your topic (not the same
as blatant self-promotional!) or simply being prepared to answer
questions.
So the next question is how to build up the number of high
quality links to your site - here's a few ideas to get you
started:
* Swap links with others' sites. Every link swap you set up will
eat up a slice of your time - so concentrate on finding sites
where it's clear the link will be valuable to you. Be polite,
add your link to them before you approach them, and don't be too
picky if it's you who is doing the approaching (just don't ask
for a link if you're going to make a bunch of rules).
* Evaluate link requests. If you have a links page (and probably
if you don't) and a reasonable amount of traffic - you will
undoubtedly get link swap requests from other webmasters. Take a
moment to look at their site and their links page before
deciding if it's a good deal for you.
* Add a "link to us page". Create a page on your site, which
includes information on how (detailed instructions), and why, to
link to your site. Make it easy, make it valuable to other
webmasters (by for example giving them free content), and over
time the number of links to you will grow.
* Pay for links. Start your own affiliate program and pay other
sites to link to you. You can pay them a percentage of the sales
they generate for you, or for each visitor they send. The nice
thing about this is if you make your program reasonably flexible
and the commissions in line with your goals, then affiliates
will figure out ways to send you the kind of traffic you want.
* Create your own free downloadable information product (like
E-Books or software for example). Make sure it ties in with the
main theme of your site - is valuable to users - and then list
it at every shareware and freeware directory you can find (there
are literally hundreds of these). Most will link directly to the
downloadable file - but many will also add a free permanent link
to your home page (or your page about the product). It's worth
knowing that some shareware and freeware sites like
http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/ and http://download.cnet.com/
have quite incredible amounts of traffic.
Whichever strategies you use to build up links to your site,
always be sure that the time you put into establishing each link
is in balance with the value of that link. Keep things in
proportion, use your knowledge of "link value" to your
advantage, and get linked for mega traffic!
About the author:
S. Tanna, webmaster and publisher of EBookCompiler.com Create
your own E-Books that you can give away free to drive massive
traffic to your web site, or sell for profit. Download a FREE
copy of the software today at: http://www.ebookcompiler.com/
